Glimpse

 The murkiness of life is overwhelming sometimes

 Hope

: in unlikely places

A little glimpse of my entry for the Full Circle project

So good to get away

A little group from Melbourne Modern Quilt Guild ran away from life for a Saturday and headed down to the Mornington Peninsula

to 

Treehouse Textiles

a crafty haven plonked down in the middle of the bush!

It was just so lovely, so lovely

So lovely!!!  Head here for some gorgeous photos of all the peeps who came  - I had a super special day with friends - how good is it to come together to enjoy your craft and enjoy others' craft too?

Terribly remiss of me to not have posted about my other Retreat loooong weekend away at Woodend Retreat, with a great bunch of crafty gals who I mainly know through SIT over the years.

8 of us was a perfect number for this place - we ate and sewed and chewed and drank and sewed and knitted and sewed and watched and laughed and sewed...until the wee hours of the night!!!

I had a really lovely weekend with this lot!

Judy, Barbara, Wendy, Esther holding Lauren, Anna, Cas, Kylie

Really looking forward to the next one planned for June next year

 

DUDQS3

I received a most wonderful package today and had to tell you about it!

Belinda of  Flickr name:  Beeware70 and Tuffin Tales

has come up trumps with a most wonderful doll quilt for moi!

AMHs Feather pattern made with fantastic colours and prints, on a Seeds Catalogue fabric, handquilted in golden perle

Boy oh Boy oh Boy

This is going straight to the pool room folks!

Some really lovely extras which were not expected but very well received:

A great book, perfect for my new teen - more on that later, and some very rare out of print, cannot find anywhere kind of stuff - Bohemian by AMH

A better close up shot of the beautiful fabric and quilting

Thank you Belinda

You did good!

When it is in the 'pool room' I will show you more, just cos I want to.

Blogtober Fest is a fantastic way of meeting new bloggy folks and I have met:

The Simple Mummy 

A fantastic blog dedicated to the joy of providing a simply wonderful life for herself and family.

She has passed on some questions for me to answer:

1. Do you look at the glass as half empty or half full?

If I'm honest, I would answer half empty, cos that's more my nature, but I try hard to counteract that with reminders of how wonderfully full my life is :)

2. What's one thing you want to accomplish before the year is over with?

My new quilting frame - I want a quilt finished on it before the year is gone!

3. All time favourite movie?

ooh don't know about this one....I love funny, romantic, quirky ones the best - Perfect Catch and 50 First Dates are classics to me.

4.  Most disliked chore?

there are so many hehe...vacumming stairs!

5. What's the first thing you think of when you wake up? 

Well, its a toss up between "oh my aching back" and "cup o'tea"

6. Favourite "you" time activity?

Blog surfing, old movie watching while I sew

7. Walk or drive?

Unfortuately drive - pretty lazy I'm afraid. 

8. What do you love about blogging?

Connecting with people who feel the same way about this hobby..other than immediate family, most others don't give a fig

9.  If you could have a superpower, what would it be?

To zap peoples' hearts into kinder, more generous organs.

10. How would your best friend describe you in one word?

Maybe... quietly complicated - sorry that's two!

11. What are you going to blog about next?

Maybe a Thai photo or two?

Make colour in your life

My Full Circle contribution to Wendy's  Hartylittlepeaces  Art Exhibition  @The Playful Market 

I love it, so does my fam and I think Wendy does too

Phew - always hard to judge if things are going right, espesh when Hundreds and Thousands of people are going to look at it!

(do you like my enthusiastic number?- it may well happen!!)

 I wanted to try to express the fullness of life - that we all start small, insignificant but as our life grows and our world expands, we need to remember to fill our lives with riches of colour and action - our lives shoot off in different directions, but none are wrong; all will take us on a journey....

You could be part of the crowd that got to see 'Full Circle' @The Playful Market - the unmissable event of Saturday 28th July!

As a little side note:

Abbe is having a discount!  we all love sales!!  The photo is not the best so here are the facts; Book, pay and stay by 31st August and you and your 9 bffs get 20% off the price of the weekend - a loooong weekend!

The Retreat @ Woodend

Mahoosive Giveaway Going On 

Check it out 

To the end of the Wood

I had a lovely time last Sunday - last day of school hols - the fam and I went on a road trip 1 hour north west of the city to the country town of Woodend.  We dropped DD2 off at an old friend's house, waved bye and 'see you soon', then I was taxied to my 'thing' for a few hours, while Hubbie and DD1 went cafe-ing for hot chocolate and some homework.

My 'thing'????  I took a little bag with me piled with my Garden Party hexagon quilt bits and knocked on the door of a sweet cottage on the edge of the bush (all by myself! I thought I was so brave hehe!). 

Why?

The Retreat - Woodend

(Photo by Abbe of Copperpatch)

Abbe from Copperpatch was having an Open Day weekend of her new and brilliant place perfect for weekends away with friends; sewing, crafting and enjoying life!  - anyone could just come and look around and have a cuppa and do some sewing!!  Yes Please!  You don't have to twist my arm!

I was welcomed in the door by Bec (another MMQG-er! nice surprise!) and many other friendly faces said Hi and come on in!!  Abbe from Copperpatch was the perfect hostess -Abbe was making scones in the (gorgeous) kitchen and took me around the extensive place - great big rooms, huge beds, 2 bathrooms, 2 lounge areas, great craft room with cathedral ceiling - so warm and inviting and that's not just Abbe herself.

I had a lovely few hours chatting away about fabric and patterns and retreats and meeting new people and eating jam and cream scones and tea and sewing (and unpicking ha!), until my 'taxi' came for me and whisked me off to more friends for cheese and shiraz.

Great Day

Great Place

Great People

Abbe is very generously having a giveaway for a whole long weekend and I mean whole (Friday 9am! to Sun 4pm!) - check out her blog, have a really good look around her website and gather your chicks around you and get booking!

Create a Full Circle

Wendy from Hartylittlepeaces needs you!

'I'm Excited!!!' as Big Kev (remember him?) used to say

Wendy loves art, breathes art, creates art - it is a part of her, and she not only is Head Poobah in running the Playful Market at Ashburton Baptist Church twice a year, she has created a fantastic opportunity for all your artistic dreams of exhibiting come true!!!

Join in - it is super easy to whip something up - grab an embroidery hoop from the local oppy! - look in their usually weird and wonderful haberdashery section

and start creating!!

1. So - thinking hats on for the Theme of ''FULL CIRCLE'
2. Get your application form: abcplayfulmarket@gmail.com
3. Pay your entry money donation (all proceeds go to a charity supporting Indonesian schoolchildren)
4. Post (with s.a.s.e.) or deliver by Thurs 19th July
5. Don't forget to come to the show!!! Saturday 28th July - it is going to look fantastic!!!  A myriad of hanging circular art.

Contact Wendy if you have any questions At All!  

Wendy is a lovely lovely person and would welcome you with open arms!

THIS IS THE PERFECT THING TO DO ON THESE SCHOOL HOLIDAYS - GET BUSY!!

Not now darling, Mummy's working...

Warning Will Robinson!  If certain words give you 'pussy bum face'....click somewhere else.....

Sh*t Oz Bloggers Say.....

"I'm shutting my blog down....nup..nup that's it...I'm shutting it down.....I'm going to write a post about how I'm going to shut my blog down."

Hil-ar-i-ous!!!

This is only Episode 1.

I need more!!!

Love a knit in Summer

A rather washed out self portrait of me and my new cowl knit

No not made by me (as if!)

but a pre-Christmas prize won by moi!

I had sent emails thanking Pretty Wit for picking my name out of a hat - random choice but still....letting them know that though it is Summer here (ie beach weather for sure!) I would be using it in due course (being Melbourne the fickle little minx she is) but Boy do I need it today!  Rain, hail and a top of 19 degrees - In January!!!
It is so so soft and warm, but not too warm and a most beautiful wheat/caramel/toast colour - I saw a lady looking at it - I sure she wanted it! Ha! All mine (except when my children snipe it from my cupboard and wear it as a hat)

check out other Pretty Witty things here!  and be just a little jealous of my new warm cowly neck? maybe not the wrinkles it hides though. You don't have to be jealous of that, just saying.

My Christmas Tag List and a Self-y or two

Running out of time to get some naff Christmas cards for the neighbours and the cousins....print your own - race down to Officeworks and grab some stiff card paper - 210gsm weight as least - it will only take a min or two!!! and start your own collection of instant card/tag downloadables that are ready at the touch of a printer button......here are just a few I've collected.....

Lollychops

EatDrinkChic  - just scroll, scroll, scroll - faves are the red and aqua deers!

Hey Look - mint and coral or green and pink? do I have to decide?

My girl Thursday - these are love-r-ly retro

Bear and Squirrel and Owl tags - divine!! (Can SOMEONE design some fan-bloody-tastic Aussie ones)
linked from Studio Morran - RIP Morran

Super cute blobs!  Also by Camilla Engman

Cute if not a little 'snow-y' 
Helen Dardek's 2010 tags - I think I love these more - her designs are sooo appealing!
and some more HD! - I use the French Cat all the time for my girl's friends presents - they always love it!

Feathers -  Inspired!!!

Mini doodles cards  - love to do a spot of doodling (if only I had time to do doodling!!!)

Fabric Bookmarks - can never have enough bookmarks I say!!

Some Christmas Eve Family Self-ies!!!

This is, of course, Ruby - OMG NOT THE CAMERA

Ha - Gotcha!

Pippi - "I must endure..."

Merry Christmas to all from us at Whippet Good  

Hope you all have a happy, relaxing and most importantly safe and secure Christmas time

Please be careful driving to the relies or to your holiday home - 

(and no falling down stairs!)

Some MO inspiration

My first Wedge piece - inspired by the indefatigable Kathy from Material Obsession

Eclectic

Colourful

Birds

Zigzagged

Stash-raiding

Out of comfort zone

Exciting!

Sydney here I come!

SIT or Sew It Together is happening this weekend ie starting Friday (when all good weekends should start!!)

Beautiful humid Sydney is hosting the show this year - I am flying up at Friday lunchtime, stitching with Prints Charming in the afternoon, dinner somewhere TBA, then Saturday bonanza crafting session which includes a Workshop of the elusive 60 degree triangle (by Material Obsession gals), giveaways, goodie bags - oh the goodies we get!!, food, drink, chat, sew, chat, sew, chat, sew, then a great meal for all of us at the Heritage Belgian Beer Cafe - Cheers!!

Sunday sees some of us on a bus to Material Obsession's new shop - a beauty I am told and I cannot wait to see some of Kathy's creations!!

Then a flight back home in the arvo to collapse at home.

I have made 5 things for the Sample Swap, where we get into groups of 6, (do a little shuffle), and swap our homemade pressies!

I have made Infinity Scarves from AMH voile - super super easy and really effective

This is me wearing all 5 - not that you would!

This is Wendy's name tag for SIT - we were too lazy to get in the official swap, so we decided to do our own - requirements are: handmade, colours of chocolate and/or citrus (food oriented here) & about 9cm size - little baa lamb has to be glued on the side before it goes. 

Pear Ginger & Caramel cake made for a birthday arvo tea at my place (cos it was my birthday - I had a truly lovely day!)  

Not so pretty once it is demolished, but oh so good!!!

cathedral window pillow close up

cathedral window pillow close up
Originally uploaded by bearpawandbearpaw

This is a lovely suggestion of what to do with those pretty little pieces of vintage linen, collected now and then, and never used or converted. I have finally found EXACTLY what I will do - Thank you bearpawandbearpaw!!!

Look Up!

Did ya notice my new header? didya didya???

I made it all by myself ....and with the wonderful machine of Picnik.

One Pretty Thing Blogging Tip roundup linked me to Life Sweet Life - great step by step instructions to easily and for free, change your blog header to something fun and fancy (if you wish) - I had to flick back and forth many many times, but that's okay!!!.....and I am happy happy happy!!!

Great Fun to play with -  I have already made three and I'm a-going back for more!!

SIT in Sydney

No, don't sit in Sydney, but Sew It Together in Sydney!! I have my flights booked - oh yeah!!  I'm shouting myself a 3 day trip to the land of the flying cockroaches (yes - they would fly in through my window!!) and the giant spiderwebs across footpaths with the beautiful creature smack in the middle ready to say hello to you, Up Real Close!

Hehe - these are just a few lovely memories I have of living in Sydney for nearly 4 years.  As newly weds, hubbie and I made the great adventure up north (not that far really!), packed up our very few belongings in a trailer and moved to the great unknown (to us).

We loved Sydney - the bush throughout the northern suburbs, the trek to the stunning beaches, the iconic sights in the city.  Didn't love the humidity wearing stockings on a hot train, didn't love the lack of a Good Coffee, didn't love the house prices or the commuting.

Didn't love family being so far away when our baby was born and we promptly said Goodbye and Thanks for the Memories.

Hey - don't let me put you off with words of various insects and not-quite-Melbourne-coffee, SIT will be fantastic-o!!!

Sheridan has gathered some spectacular sponsors, some great shopping stops and workshops, and I am looking forward to it all!!!

Please Come - I would love to see you there!  We could share??????????????

 (I don't snore)